


Wizard of SHIELD

by Alisanne



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-08
Updated: 2015-05-08
Packaged: 2018-03-29 13:15:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3897718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alisanne/pseuds/Alisanne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Neville has been noticed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wizard of SHIELD

**Author's Note:**

> **Challenge:** Written for the 2015 Spring Intoabar Challenge. Prompt: Neville Longbottom goes into a bar and meets... Lance Hunter (Agents of SHIELD).
> 
> **Author’s notes:** This is completely AU for AoS. I'd forgotten how ~exciting it is to write in a universe where canon is still open and changing. :P. 
> 
> Thanks to my Harry Potter betas, Sevfan and Emynn, and to my AoS beta, Alafaye for looking this over for me.

~

Wizard of SHIELD

~

Florida was as different from England as Neville could’ve imagined. Hot, sunny, sandy...it was beautiful, and strange. The people were colourful, the food hot and spicy, and Neville wasn’t sure he’d have chosen to come on his own, but now that he was there taking a course at the local uni on Muggle plant biology, he didn’t miss overcast England. 

People were friendly enough: there was even a professor, Professor Tucker, who, after watching him closely the first few weeks, had invited him home for dinner with her and her family. Neville was almost sure she’d seen him Apparate once, but since she never said a word, he quit worrying about it.

Despite the gorgeous weather, however, and the curiously incurious people, Neville missed home. And Ginny, who was on tour with the Harpies and not often Floo-able. So when he heard a familiar accent, he froze, spinning to see who was speaking. 

It was a dark-haired man, wearing a red floral shirt, and he was speaking into a mobile phone. Without thinking, Neville cast an Eavesdropping Charm and edged closer, soaking up the familiar accent. “...we all have our bad days. Trust me, if we just lay low until Fitz finds us, we’ll be fine. Plus, he managed to open Fury’s toolbox on his own. He’ll get here soon enough.”

He paused and Neville paused with him, listening. “I _am_ being careful, Coulson, but I can only wander the city for so long. Plus, I needed a drink.” He stopped talking for a moment as, presumably, the person on the other end said something. “Yes, I know there’s liquor there, but I need a drink I don’t have to make myself.” 

Neville smiled. He could definitely sympathise. 

The man stopped in front of a seedy bar, looking at it. “Yes, I’m aware of my assignment. It’s a bust, though. I dunno how I’m supposed to find this bloke in a city this size, especially with no way to track him, and the resources you say he has at his disposal.”

A scantily-clad woman walked by and the man paused to give her an appreciative once-over before returning to his call. He listened for a moment then said, “I’m not giving up, I’m just taking a break. Tell you what, boss, I should be back in an hour. If you want, I’ll even bring a bottle back with me. Deal?” Then, stuffing the mobile in his pocket, he entered.

Neville paused, pondering his options. He really wasn’t fond of bars; they were nothing like pubs, and served the drinks all wrong. But, he was pretty sure he wasn’t within miles of another English person either, and who knew when he’d encounter another? Finally, deciding he could stand to go in for a few minutes if it meant being able to listen to someone from home, he approached the bar. 

After waiting a moment so as not to be too conspicuous, he pushed open the door, walked in, and was immediately grabbed, pulled forcibly into an alcove, and shoved face first into a wall. Neville started to go for his wand, but froze when he felt something firm being poked into his back. 

“So,” the man he’d followed inside hissed. “Who are you, and why are you following me?” 

Neville swallowed hard at the implied menace in the man’s tone. “My name’s Neville Longbottom,” he babbled. “And I heard you talking outside and...and I just wanted to hear someone from home. I don’t mean any harm--” 

“I knew it, you Hydra scu--” The man paused. “Wait...what?” 

Neville coughed and repeated himself. “I just wanted to hear someone from home.”

The pressure on his back eased. “No, I mean-- _You’re_ Neville Longbottom? Seriously? And _you_ followed _me_ in here because of my accent?” 

“Er...yes?” Neville bit his lip. “Look, I’m sorry I bothered you. I know it’s mental. I’ll just go--”

“No.” The pressure disappeared and a moment later the man circled in front of Neville. Subjecting him to a piercing look, he shook his head. “Of all the coincidences--” He smiled. “All right, Neville Longbottom. Sorry about that, I’m a bit...tetchy right now. Tell you what. Why don’t I buy you a drink, and you can tell me what one of my countrymen is doing in sunny south Florida so far from home.” 

Neville blinked. The dangerous man who’d held him against the wall had been replaced by a charming, urbane bloke, and the change was startling. “Um...”

“My name’s Hunter.” Hunter gestured towards the bar. “Are you sure I can’t tempt you? They make some pretty nifty umbrella drinks here, although, honestly, I never did understand the appeal of the umbrellas. Anyway, join me? I hate drinking alone.”

“Yeah,” said Neville. Maybe he’d imagined that dangerous flash in Hunter’s eyes? Maybe it had all just been a mistake. “Yeah, okay.”

Hunter smiled tightly. “Brilliant.”

They settled at the bar, and Hunter ordered something called a daiquiri. Neville followed suit. It came with the promised umbrella, which Neville removed and inspected carefully. “What’s the point of these, anyway?” he asked, finally setting it aside. 

Hunter shrugged. “No idea. To make you think you’re getting your money’s worth, I suppose.” He took a sip of his drink. “I’m guessing some marketing genius convinced a bar owner he could charge more for drinks if they have bendy straws and umbrellas in them, and it took off from there.”

“Marketing?” Neville frowned.

“Conniving liars and thieves,” Hunter growled. “There’s a lot of that going around, actually.” 

Neville smiled. “You sound like you’ve had a rough time day.” 

Hunter snorted and signalled the bartender for another drink. “Try a rough couple of weeks.” He shook his head. “Although, honestly, it’s been going on longer than that. Ever since I gave up being an honest mercenary and became a company man.” He turned to face Neville ad leaned close. “I probably shouldn’t be telling you this, but you seem like the trustworthy type.” 

“Er, thanks,” Neville said.

“Anyway, I’d probably be in Mexico now, enjoying the sun, sea, bikini clad babes, and tequila but for my bloody ex.” His expression darkened. “That thieving, conniving bitch--” 

“Is she a mercenary, too?” Neville asked, fascinated despite himself. 

“Bobby?” Hunter’s laugh was dark, bitter. “Oh no, she was totally the company girl. Toed the company line, even got me to sign on. At least, that was what she pretended to be, right up until she tried to slip the knife between our boss’ ribs.” 

Neville’s eyes widened. “She...killed your boss?” 

“No. But I’ve no doubt she would if her new friends had their way.” Hunter hesitated, then, seemingly having made a decision, lowered his voice and said, “I was in SHIELD, you see.” 

He said it like it meant something. Neville shrugged. “Okay?” 

Hunter frowned. “You know. SHIELD.? _The_ SHIELD?” He raised an eyebrow. “Buildings coming down all over the place? Planes falling out of the sky? Where have you been living, mate, under a rock?”

Neville coughed. “I’m not much for the Mug...the news.”

Hunter nodded slowly. “Yeah, I guess not. Well, we are...were a counter-espionage, counter-terrorism, law enforcement agency within the US government. We monitored what you could call unusual threats.”

“Like what?”

Hunter smiled. “Anything odd. Like lights in the sky sort of odd. Alien invasions. People with...powers.” 

“Powers?” Neville coughed. “You mean like magic powers?”

“You could say that.” Hunter shrugged. “That is if you believe in that sort of thing.”

“Right.” Neville exhaled. “So what happened with SHIELD?” 

“We got attacked from the inside.” Hunter signalled the bartender for another drink. “A group called Hydra. Everyone thought we’d defeated them back in World War II, but all they did was go underground to join and then invade us from the inside.”

Neville shook his head. It sounded a lot like recent politics in the wizarding war, only on a larger scale. “So now you defeated them and everything’s all right?” 

“I wish.” Getting his drink, Hunter discarded the umbrella. “They’re well funded, tricky bastards. And now that they’ve shown their hand, they have no compunctions about coming after us. At least before they weren’t supposed to be around. Now--” 

Neville nodded. It was a lot like Voldemort. “Now they’re not hiding anymore. And now you’re the ones on the defensive, almost like an underground resistance.”

“Yeah.” Hunter’s eyes narrowed. “You sound like you have some experience with this.” 

“Not with _this_ exactly, but there was a similar situation in my...school.” Neville sighed. “It took hard work to kick them out.” 

“Nice.” Hunter hesitated for a moment. “So with your experience, do you think you’d be up for...consulting?” 

Mid-sip, Neville almost choked. “Consulting? As what?” He frowned, mind racing as he pondered what Hunter could mean. “Merlin. This meeting wasn’t a coincidence, was it?” 

Hunter’s smile was more genuine. “I knew you’d catch on eventually. No, it wasn’t a coincidence, although I seriously wasn’t expecting you to find me.” 

“What do you want from me?” Neville asked, his hand closing around his wand in preparation for Stunning Hunter and leaving. 

Hunter, apparently aware of his imminent danger, held up both hands in the universal signal of surrender. “We just need your help. There’s a colleague of ours who was kidnapped by a group of mysterious people. We think they have a hideout someplace but we don’t know where.”

“Okay.” Neville didn’t loosen his grip on his wand. “What does this have to do with me?”

“You’ve been spotted appearing and disappearing at will from the uni where you’re studying.”

Neville blinked, his mind racing. “How--? Merlin. Professor Tucker.”

Hunter nodded. “She’s done work for us a time or two. She knew we’d be interested in your...abilities.” 

Neville shook his head. “I don’t have abilities, I’m just--” He hesitated, pretty sure the Statute of Secrecy wasn’t something he wanted to violate without good reason. “I’m pretty ordinary, actually.”

“I doubt that,” came a new voice and Neville spun to see a nondescript man wearing a blue suit, standing behind him. “Hello, Mr Longbottom. I’m Director Coulson of SHIELD.”

“You’re the one Hunter was on the phone with earlier,” Neville blurted.

“And how did you know that?” Hunter asked. “I wasn’t exactly yelling.” He smirked triumphantly at Coulson. “He’s more talented than we thought.” 

Neville sighed. “I, um, eavesdropped. Look, I wish I could help, but I could get into trouble if anyone discovered I told you anything about...well, anything.” 

“You mean there’s more of you?” Hunter’s eyes widened and he leaned forward. “Is there some sort of a hierarchal structure? Who’s in charge? Can we talk to them?” 

“We don’t need to know any of that,” Coulson interrupted, shooting a quelling look at Hunter. “We don’t pose a danger to whatever group you’re with, we just need your help locating our friend.” 

Neville frowned. “Hunter said it was a colleague.” 

Coulson smiled faintly. “She’s both, actually. Have you no colleagues who are also friends?” 

Neville sighed, releasing his grip in his wand. “Yes. All of them, in fact.” He shook his head. “I really shouldn’t be doing this.”

“But you will?” Hunter asked. 

Neville nodded. “I guess it can’t hurt to try. What can you tell me about this friend of yours?”

“Thank you.” Hunter exhaled. “Right. So her name’s Skye and she was taken by this bloke with no eyes who keeps appearing out of nowhere in a blue, glowy forcefield--” 

Neville listened with growing disbelief as they spoke about aliens and Muggles with superpowers and people called Asgardians. “We know this all seems unbelievable,” Coulson finally said, clearly realising how things sounded. “Do you believe us?”

“Sure.” Neville shrugged. “I mean I believe you believe what you’re telling me. So do you have anything of hers? A photo, maybe?” 

“Yeah.” Reaching into his coat pocket, Hunter pulled out a picture. “Here you go.” 

Taking the photo, Neville looked around. “Okay, I’m going to need some privacy--” 

“It’s fine.” Coulson smiled. “We’d prefer privacy for this as well. We’re staying in a hotel nearby if you’re comfortable--” 

“Yes, all right,” agreed Neville, tucking the photo away. 

After paying the bar bill, Hunter led the way outside and down the street. Their hotel was only a few streets over, and no one was in the lobby when the three of them entered. Once they made it to the suite, Neville looked around. Coulson stepped in front of him. “Why don’t you come through here,” he said, gesturing. “And do you need anything? A computer?” 

Neville smiled. “A map and some privacy?” 

Coulson looked at Hunter, who nodded. “On it, boss.”

Leading Neville into a bedroom, Coulson said, “It’s basic, but it serves our needs.” 

Hunter strolled in. “I just happen to have a world map here,” he said. He grinned. “Knew it would come in handy.” He handed it to Neville, who laid it flat on the bed. 

“I’ll need that privacy now,” said Neville.

“Of course.” Coulson backed away. “Let us know if you need anything else.” 

Once he was alone, Neville drew both his wand and the photo out of his pocket. Placing the picture flat in the centre of the map, he rested his wand atop it. “ _Point me to Skye_!” 

Slowly the wand started to spin, turning faster and faster. Neville frowned. In his experience, the modified Point Me should work fast to locate a person or place, although he supposed if something was actively blocking it, then--

His wand started to slow before it pointed towards one spot, although it couldn’t seem to make up its mind if it meant India or Tibet, gyrating slowly between the two. Leaning over, Neville peered closely at he map. “Nepal,” he whispered. “I wonder--” He raised his voice. “Hunter?”

Hunter and Coulson appeared so fast it was almost as if they’d been conjured. When Hunter saw Neville’s wand slowly oscillating, his eyes widened. 

“You found something?” Coulson said.

“I think so.” Placing his hand over his wand, Neville closed his eyes. He smiled. “Okay, so I can’t say exactly where she is, but I can maybe take one of you there, will that do?” 

“Me,” said Coulson. 

Hunter shook his head. “And if you get captured? Then what? No, it’s got to be me. Although...” He turned to Neville. “If you can only carry one, how do we all get back?”

“I can carry more than one,” said Neville. “But an three gets tricky. I was trying to make the trip back doable.” 

“Smart.” Coulson nodded. “All right. You both go. But if things go wrong you get out of there. Even if you can’t rescue Skye. You abort the mission and you leave if there are any problems, am I clear?” 

As Hunter murmured his acquiescence and began strapping on guns, Neville stared at Coulson. Gone was the mild mannered man, replaced by a steely-eyed commander who reminded him for a moment of Kingsley.

“Right,” said Hunter once he was ready. He nodded to Neville. “Anything I should know before we leave?” 

Holding out his arm, Neville smiled. “Don’t let go of me until we’re there. And I hope you have a strong stomach.” 

Hunter smirked. “I can take anything you throw at me.” 

_We’ll see._ “All right, then. Here we go.” And as the squeeze of Apparation took them, he almost wished he could savour the look of surprise on Coulson’s face. 

They landed in what looked like a garden, Hunter clinging to Neville’s arm for dear life. “My God,” breathed Hunter, his face ashen. “I think I’m going to be sick.” 

Neville nodded. “If you are, do it in that corner,” he advised as he looked around to make sure no one was nearby. 

Groaning, Hunter bent over, but somehow managed not to sick up. 

“All right?” Neville asked after a few more seconds.

“Yeah,” Hunter groaned, straightening up. “Let’s go. We need to find Skye and get the hell out of here. Although I have to say, I may walk back after that.”

“It’ll take you a while,” said Neville as they edged around a wall. He pointed to a snow-capped mountain in the distance. “I’m pretty sure we’re not in Florida anymore. In fact, I don’t think we’re in the western hemisphere anymore.” 

“Where the hell are we?” Hunter muttered as they moved. “And where is everyone? I haven’t seen a single soul. You’d think--” As they rounded a corner, both he and Neville stopped and stared. 

They were in what looked like a picturesque village filled with wooden huts surrounded by beautifully laid out gardens. Several people were strolling about, and no one looked up as they stood there. Hunter quickly dragged Neville back behind the wall. “Well damn. Right, you stay here and I’ll go look for Skye and bring her back.”

Neville shook his head. “I don’t think we should separate.” 

“We must!” Hunter hissed. He ran a hand through his hair. “Unless you can think of a way to get us past everyone down there without anyone seeing us.”

Neville coughed. “Actually--”

Hunter raised an eyebrow. “You are full of surprises, aren’t you? All right, lead on.”

“Stick close by,” said Neville just before he cast a Notice-Me-Not. “The range on this spe--On what I’m going to do isn’t that far.” 

Side by side, they emerged from behind the wall and moved into the ‘village’. No one noticed them, even though the came within a few feet of several people. “Can we talk?” Hunter mouthed at Neville. 

Neville shook his head. “Best not,” he mouthed back. “They can still hear us.” 

Hunter nodded his understanding. 

Circling the place, they ducked inside several huts, leaving those they found empty. When they got to one on the outskirts, Hunter whispered, “This is the last one. She’d better be in here.” 

Neville bit his lip. Had he made a mistake somehow? He didn’t think so, but maybe his direction had been off? “Um, maybe I should try the picture again--”

As he spoke, the door to the hut opened and a young woman, who looked remarkably like the picture Neville had traced, emerged. 

“Skye!” exclaimed Hunter. 

Skye blinked, looking around. “Who’s there?” she asked, holding her hands out in front of her in a defensive pose. 

“Merlin, I forgot she can’t see us,” Neville said, and cancelled the Notice-Me-Not. 

Skye’s mouth dropped open. “Oh my God! Hunter?” Dropping her hands, she focussed for a moment on Neville. “And who are you?” 

Neville smiled tentatively. “I’m Neville Longbottom and I’m, erm--” 

“He’s with me,” interrupted Hunter. “My transport. Coulson sent us to rescue you.” 

“Rescue--?” Skye groaned. “Hunter, that’s sweet, but I don’t need to be rescued. I’ve finally found my parents. They’re alive! Can you believe it? And they’re teaching me about my gift.” 

“Your gift. Right.” Hunter exhaled. “So does that mean you don’t want to come back with me?” 

Skye bit her lip. “I don’t think I should. It’s just...now’s a bad time.” 

“A bad time?” Hunter groaned. “Bloody hell, woman, you can’t be serious. Do you know the sort of flack I’m going to get if I don’t return with you? Coulson’s going to have my head. First, some rogue division of SHIELD breaks in and ousts Coulson, and they start hunting you. Then, you disappear in a blue glowly light, making us think you’d been abducted by aliens -- nice trick, by the way -- and now they’re trying to open Fury’s toolbox. We need you back, Skye. Coulson needs you.” 

Skye’s eyes narrowed. “Wait, _what_ happened?”

While Hunter began to explain in more detail, Neville looked around, nervous. “Can we move this inside? We’re a bit exposed out here,” he finally said, interrupting Hunter’s plea. 

Hunter nodded. “Good idea.” He pointed to the hut. “In there, maybe?” 

“Sure. Fine.” Opening the door, Skye walked back inside the house, ushering them in after her. “How did you find me anyway? Gordon says he’s the only one who knows where we are.” 

Hunter looked around. “No idea. That was Neville’s department.” 

“Are you a pilot or something?” Skye asked, focussing on Neville. 

Neville coughed. “Or something,” he muttered. 

Skye shook her head. “This is crazy,” she said. “And you have to get out of there before someone realises you’re here.”

“Not without you.” Hunter crossed his arms. 

“I can’t!” Skye shoved her hands in her pockets. “I have to learn how to control what I can do, don’t you see? I’m dangerous, I can...hurt people.” 

“Can’t we all?” Hunter sighed. “Look,” he said, tone soft. “I get it. You’re worried that you hurt agents when they tried to take you before. I’ve seen the footage, and it looked to me as if that agent shot at you and you defended yourself.” He shook his head. “Bottom line, we need you, Skye. _Coulson_ needs you. Just come and hear what he has to say. Don’t you owe him that at least?”

Skye groaned. “You don’t play fair.” 

Hunter smiled tightly. “No, I suppose not. Bu here’s the thing. This is what we do.” He gestured at the hut. “How long do you think you can live here, like this? Come home, Skye. At least talk to Coulson.” 

“How are we going to get to your plane?” she asked. She looked at Neville.

Neville smiled. “Um, there is no plane.”

“Then how--?” Skye blinked. “You have powers, too?” 

“Of a sort,” said Neville. He narrowed his eyes, staring out the window. “And is it just me or do those people look like they’re heading straight here?”

“They do.” He turned to Skye. “Last chance. Please, Skye.” 

Skye sighed. “All right.” 

When Neville drew his wand, both Skye’s and Hunter’s eyes widened. “What the hell--?” muttered Hunter. 

Neville smiled tightly at him. “No time for subtlety,” he said, holding out his arm to Hunter and grabbing Skye’s. “It’s now or never. Brace yourselves.” And, as the squeeze of Apparation spun them away, the last thing Neville saw of the hut was the shocked faces of the men who burst in in time to see them disappear. 

The ride back was a bit rougher, and when they landed in the hotel room, even Neville was a bit nauseated. 

Hunter gave up all pretence and made a run for the toilet. Neville could hear him retching. Tucking his wand away, he breathed in and out a few times to recover.

Skye did a bit better than Hunter, gulping big breaths of air as she hung her head between her knees. “What the hell--?” she gasped. 

“Skye?” Coulson walked in, a man with curly brown hair peering over his shoulder. “Is it you?” 

Straightening up, Skye slowly turned. “Coulson,” she whispered, and a moment later they were hugging. 

“Hullo, I’m Fitz,” the curly-haired man said to Neville. “And you must be Longbottom.” 

“That’s me.” Neville smiled at the familiar accent. “Is every other person in this organisation British?”

“Nah, just the smart ones.” Fitz inclined his head. “I’ve heard good things about you. The rescue went well, I take it?” 

“It was brilliant. Got us in and out, no muss no fuss,” said Hunter, back from the toilet. He looked better, if a bit green. “Although next time we really should take a plane. That turned my stomach inside out.” 

Neville smiled. “Yeah, that does take some getting used to.” His wand buzzed and he clutched his pocket. “I need to go--”

“Of course.” Coulson extended his hand. “We won’t keep you from your work.” His handshake was firm. “We appreciate your help.”

Neville nodded. Skye was beaming, chatting softly with Fitz and Hunter. He smiled. “Just glad I could help reunite old friends.” 

Coulson hummed. “One more thing, Mr Longbottom. We can discuss it while I walk you out.” 

When he moved towards the door, however, Hunter was there. “Before you go, just wanted to say thanks. You did well back there, cool under pressure.” He glanced at Coulson. “Have you ever considered...government work?”

Neville coughed. “Not really.”

Coulson cleared his throat. “Perhaps you should leave this side of things to me, Hunter,” he said pointedly.

Hunter grinned, stepping back. “Of course, boss. My bad.” He winked at Neville. “Maybe I’ll see you again sometime.” 

Neville smiled back. “Um, sure. Nice to meet you all.”

Once in the lobby, Coulson turned to Neville. In his hand was a card with a number on it. “Take this. It’s a way to contact me. If you ever feel like moving on from your current career, perhaps doing some contract work for us, or even becoming an agent, let me know. I could really use a man with your skills.”

Flattered, Neville pocketed the card. “Thanks. I’ll...think about it.” 

“Excellent.” Coulson stepped back. “Good day, Mr Longbottom.”

As Neville turned away and stepped out of the hotel and into the bright sunshine, he grinned. Neville Longbottom, agent of SHIELD did have a nice ring to it. _Maybe someday._

~


End file.
